title: Klebsiella pneumoniae meningitis induces memory impairment and increases pro-inflammatory host response in the central nervous system of Wistar rats.
abstract: Klebsiella pneumoniae meningitis has recently become an increasingly common cause of central nervous system infection. The invasion of bacteria within the subarachnoid space stimulates the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, triggering a host immune response. The aim of the present study was to evaluate memory and pro-inflammatory mediators at different times in the brains of adult Wistar rats with K. pneumoniae meningitis. The animals were sacrificed at 6, 12, 24, 48 and 96 h after meningitis induction. The hippocampus, frontal cortex and cerebrospinal fluid were isolated to determine the cytokine, chemokine and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels. In the first 6 and 24 h following meningitis induction, there was a significant increase of the TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant-1 and BDNF levels in the central nervous system. Ten days after meningitis induction, cognitive memory was evaluated using an open-field task and step-down inhibitory avoidance task. In the control group, significant differences in behaviour were observed between the training and testing sessions for both tasks, demonstrating habituation and aversive memory. However, the meningitis group did not exhibit any difference between the training and testing sessions in either task, demonstrating memory impairment. As a result of these observations, we believe that the meningitis model may be a good research tool to study the biological mechanisms involved in the pathophysiology of this illness, while recognizing that animal models should be interpreted with caution before extrapolation to the clinic.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Microbiologia Experimental, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Tatiana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Barichello
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Microbiologia Experimental, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lutiana R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Simões
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Neurociências, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Samira S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Valvassori
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Microbiologia Experimental, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Jaqueline S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Generoso
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Microbiologia Experimental, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Paulo Eduardo D V
authors.initials: PEDV
authors.lastname: Aveline
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Neurociências, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Diogo
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dominguini
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Microbiologia Experimental, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Samuel G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Elias
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Imunofarmacologia, Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marcia C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Vilela
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Neurociências, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências da Saúde, Unidade Acadêmica de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense, Criciúma, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: João
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Quevedo
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Imunofarmacologia, Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Antonio Lucio
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Teixeira
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor / Q000032:analysis; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000737:chemistry; D016207:Cytokines / Q000032:analysis*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology; D007710:Klebsiella Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology*; D007711:Klebsiella pneumoniae / Q000254:growth & development; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D016920:Meningitis, Bacterial / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; D016207:Cytokines